Huberdeau had a pair of goals in Saint John’s 6-3 win
over the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on Friday night at Harbour Station. On
Saturday, he added another goal and three assists in the Sea Dogs’ 6-0 win over
the Chicoutimi Sagueneens to give him six points on the weekend.

The Florida Panthers prospect has now recorded seven
goals and 15 assists in just 10 games since returning from National Hockey
League training camp.

The Sea Dogs are 9-1 since Huberdeau’s return and have
won seven straight games since he was named captain on October 13th.

Huberdeau was named the league’s third star last week.

Pageau registered four goals and an assist in two
games this past week to earn second star honours. In three games, Critchlow had
two goals and four assists to help the Mooseheads sweep their Quebec road trip.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

The building buzzed as owners, employees and players of
the Saint John Sea Dogs hockey club received their Memorial Cup championship rings. Fans stood and cheered as the President’s Cup and Memorial Cup banners were
raised to the rafters. And as if that wasn’t enough excitement, they watched the
Sea Dogs dominant the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, winning 6-0.

It was quite a night for the Sea Dogs and the city of
Saint John, a night that won’t be forgotten for some time.

In our two-plus
years of covering the team, this was one of the most memorable nights. Here is
a recap of the festivities.

NOT PLAYING: The Sea Dogs didn’t make any changes to their lineup. Defenseman Tyrone Sock (healthy) and forwards Devon Oliver-Dares
(personal reasons) and Stanislav Galiev (broken wrist) were out once again.

FIRST PERIOD: Saint John had yet another strong first
period, scoring twice and outshooting Chicoutimi 17-4. The Sags only eight shots through the first two periods.

FORMER DOGS: It was a fairly quiet night for the former
Sea Dogs now playing for Chicoutimi.

Defenseman Guillaume Cloutier was a -1 and had no shots,
defenseman Gabriel Bourret had one shot and was a -3 and forward Alexandre
Beauregard was a -1 and had seven penalty minutes.

Both Bourret and Beauregard helped Saint John capture the
Memorial Cup last year. They skated out in Sea Dogs jerseys to pick up their
championship rings during the pre-game ceremonies.

SAINT JOHN – The Saint John Sea Dogs played like
champions on Saturday night.

On ‘Night of Champions’ night at Harbour Station, the Sea
Dogs dominated the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, winning their seventh straight game
by score of 6-0.

Zack Phillips had a pair of goals while Jonathan
Huberdeau, Ryan Tesink, Tomas Jurco and Grant West added solo markers.
Huberdeau also had three assists.

Goaltender Mathieu Corbeil continued his strong play,
stopping all 14 shots he faced. It was his third shutout in four games.

The Dogs dominated most of the match, holding the
Sagueneens to just eight shots through two periods and 14 in total. Saint John
fired 33 shots on the Chicoutimi goal. Christopher Gibson allowed five goals on
26 shots while Francis Desrosiers made six stops in relief.

Prior to the game, the Sea Dogs honoured team staff,
coaches and players of last year’s Memorial Cup championship team. Championship
rings were handed out and the President’s Cup and Memorial Cup banners were
raised to the rafters.

On a night the Sea Dogs honoured the past, they showed
that the future looks quite promising as well.

After a long wait, the Saint John Sea Dogs will finally
raise their President’s Cup and Memorial Cup championship banners to the
rafters of Harbour Station. Players, coaches, ownership, and staff will also receive
their championship rings in a pre-game ceremony.

“As a lifelong Saint Johner, I know the people of this
city are proud of their champions. To be the only Maritime team in the 93-year
history of the Memorial Cup to bring home this national championship trophy
means a tremendous amount to the organization, and the city as a whole,” Sea
Dogs president Wayne Long said in a release earlier this week. “This is an
accomplishment for everyone in the Greater Saint John area to celebrate.”

Fans attending tonight’s match – which is close to a sell-out
– are asked to be in their seats early for the ceremony. The official game time
is 7pm.

Several special guests will be on hand for the historic
night. Canadian Hockey League President David Branch and Quebec Major Junior
Hockey League Commissioner Gilles Courteau will be among the special guests
participating in the ring ceremony. Other confirmed guests include Saint John
Mayor Ivan Court, Rothesay Mayor Bill Bishop, Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll,
Grand Bay - Westfield Mayor Grace Losier and area MLAs Dorothy Shephard and
Glen Tait.

The Sea Dogs also announced yesterday that goaltender
Jacob DeSerres, who was Saint John’s No. 1 goaltender in their march to the
national championship, will in the building for the festivities.

Along with all the special ceremonies, there is also a
game to play. The Chicoutimi Sagueneens are in town as they face the Sea Dogs
for the first time this season.

The Sags have a record of 9-5-1-4 and sit fourth in the
tough Telus East Division and sixth overall in the league with 23 points. They
are 6-2-1-1 in their last 10 games and have not lost in regulation over their
past four games.

Saint John has a record of 13-5-0-0 and sit first in the
Maritimes Division and second overall in the league. They are winners of six
straight and are 8-2-0-0 in their last 10 games.

SAINT JOHN – The Cape Breton Screaming Eagles were able
to outshoot the Saint John Sea Dogs on Friday night at Harbour Station but weren’t
able to beat them on the scoreboard.

The Sea Dogs downed the Eagles 6-3 in Quebec Major Junior
Hockey League action, giving them their sixth consecutive victory.

Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice while Zack Phillips,
Stephen MacAulay, Danick Gauthier and Ryan Tesink added singles. Mathieu
Corbeil saw his shutout streak end but still got the win. He made 34 saves in
the victory.

It wasn’t Saint John’s best performance nor was it dominating like last weekend’s games. But it got the job done.

Morgan Ellis, David Rose and Kyle Campbell each had goals
in the loss. Alexandre Veronneau allowed six goals on 34 shots. Cape Breton was
able to outshoot the Dogs in every period except the first. Total shots were
37-34 in favour of the visitors.

SAINT JOHN – One of the key components in the Saint John
Sea Dogs’ Memorial Cup victory will be at Harbour Station tomorrow night for ‘Night
of Champions.’

The Sea Dogs announced today that goaltender Jacob DeSerres will be
in-house tomorrow evening as the team hands out their championship rings and
raise their banners to the rafters.

DeSerres, who Saint John claimed off waivers from the
Western Hockey League last October, went 27-3-0 in the regular season with a goals against
average of 2.22 and a save percentage of 0.916. He was solid in the
post-season as well, going 12-3-0 with 2.00 GAA and a 0.916 save percentage.

In the Memorial Cup, the overager went 3-0 with a 1.82
GAA and a 0.946 save percentage. He was unreal in the Memorial Cup final, making 34
stops to redeem himself of the 9-1 loss he suffered in the final a year prior with the
Brandon Wheat Kings.

DeSerres joined the University of Calgary Dinos in the
off-season.

A limited number of tickets remain for tomorrow night’s
historic match. The Sea Dogs take on the Chicoutimi Saguennens at 7pm.

The Sea Dogs also announced today that an “authentic
goalie stick used by Jacob DeSerres during the team’s 2011 run to the Memorial
Cup championship” will be put up for auction. The starting bid is $77.11, representing
Saint John’s 77-11 overall record last season.

“Our team gets requests from all over the world for Sea
Dogs merchandise and memorabilia,” said Sea Dogs President Wayne Long in a
release. “We have held auctions on special game nights over the years, but we
recognize that not all of our fans are able to come to Saint John for a game.
This online auction is a great way for our fans far and wide to own a piece of
Sea Dogs history. What better way to launch than with an authentic piece of
Memorial Cup memorabilia on the weekend we are celebrating the championships.”

SAINT JOHN – The Cape Breton Screaming Eagles are in town tonight for the first time this season. Game time is 7:30pm at Harbour Station.

The Eagles enter action today with a record of 7-10-0-1
for 15 points. They sit fifth in the Maritimes Division and 13th
overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. They are 11 points back of
the league-leading Victoriaville Tigres and nine points back of the
division-leading Saint John Sea Dogs.

Cape Breton defeated Saint John 8-5 in their only
previous meeting of the season back on September 16 at Centre 200. Dany Potvin
scored three goals while David Rose, Cory MacIntosh, JC Campagna, Sebastien
Payette and William Carrier scored singles. Alexandre Veronneau made 23 stops
in net for the win.

A lot has changed since that game, though. Saint John was
without the likes of Jonathan Huberdeau, Zack Phillips, Nathan Beaulieu, Tomas Jurco,
Mathieu Corbeil, Danick Gauthier and all the others who took part in National
Hockey League rookie and/training camps.

On September 16, Oliver Cooper had two goals. Aidan
Kelly, Kraig Pasher and Stephen Anderson added solo markers while Charlie
Millen made 29 stops in the loss. The Sea Dogs led 4-1 in the second period but
eventually blew that lead. Given the Sea Dogs’ lineup that night, they didn’t
do all that bad.

Saint John’s lineup will have a lot more familiar names
in it this evening when the two teams clash.

Saint John enters action tonight with a record of
12-5-0-0 for 24 points. They sit first in the Maritimes Division and second
overall in the league. They are two points back of the league-leading Tigres
with two games in hand.

The Sea Dogs have won five straight and coming off a
dominating three-in-three performance last weekend. They defeated the Halifax
Mooseheads 5-0, PEI Rocket 10-3 and the Quebec Remparts 6-0.

Sportsnet announced last night that they will be airing a
Canadian Hockey League game every Friday night in high definition during the regular
season.

“We wanted a home position for CHL hockey on Sportsnet
and created destination viewing with Friday Night Hockey,” said Scott
Moore, President, Broadcasting, Rogers Media. “We recognize the hunger
and passion for junior hockey across the country and now fans will have a
consistent night each week to catch all the action.”

Sportsnet also announced that RJ Broadhead will do
play-by-play this season after the station parted ways with Peter Loubardias
over the off-season. Analyst Sam Cosentino and host Rob Faulds are returning
for another year. Cosentino will apparently be doing Skype chats throughout the
season which should be quite exciting.

The first-half broadcast schedule was released today, and
to the shock of nobody, only one QMJHL game will be aired while the OHL and WHL
will each have three. The Q game features the Val-d’Or Foreurs taking on the
Gatineau Olympiques. Doesn’t get much more exciting than that.

POISED FOR A REPEAT

Speaking of Loubardias, he is doing some writing for
Chris Cuthbert’s ‘Golden Goal Sports Blog’ and yesterday had a post about why
he believes the Sea Dogs are favourites to repeat as national champions.

“The way I see it, Gerard Gallants team has all the tools
to do it again,” writes Loubardias. “With a supporting cast that features the
likes of first round picks Zack Phillips and Nathan Beaulieu, Detroit second
rounder Tomas Jurco and Washington Capitals prospect Stanislav Galiev (just to
name a few), how can this group not be the favourite to return to glory? Lets face it, almost everyone is back.”

“Many in the hockey world, including myself, were
somewhat stunned when they were not awarded the right to host this year's
Memorial Cup. While Gerard Gallant and company don't like to talk about it publicly,
they are some kind of sour about it.”

SAINT JOHN– Saturday’s ‘Night of Champions’ at Harbour
Station is sure to be a memorable event.

The Memorial Cup arrived back in Saint John on Wednesday
as excitement continues to build fir Saturday’s Sea Dogs contest against the
Chicoutimi Sagueneens. The championship banners will be raised to the rafters
and members of the off- and on-ice team will receive their rings.

According to a Sea Dogs release, “Canadian
Hockey League President David Branch and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
Commissioner Gilles Courteau will be among the special guests participating in
the ring ceremony. Other confirmed guests include Saint John Mayor Ivan Court,
Rothesay Mayor Bill Bishop, Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll, Grand Bay -
Westfield Mayor Grace Losier and area MLAs Dorothy Shephard and Glen Tait. Game
time is 7 p.m. but fans are encouraged to be in their seats early.”

Roughly 1,000 tickets remained as off Thursday morning.
The Harbour Station website lists ticket availability as “limited.”

SeaDogsTV released some solid videos earlier this week
featuring interviews with goaltender Jacob DeSerres and forwards Danick
Gauthier and Jonathan Huberdeau. All three helped Saint John win the 2011
national championship.

Here is the DeSerres video. The description says “sneak
peak of a special interview.”

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

After a solid week, the Saint John Sea Dogs have moved up in the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings. The latest edition of the rankings were released today.

The Sea Dogs moved up to No. 3 on this week’s list after winning all three of their games in dominant fashion. Saint John beat Halifax 5-0 on the road on Friday, downed the PEI Rocket 10-3 at Harbour Station on Saturday and then defeated the Quebec Remparts by score of 6-0 on Sunday afternoon.

Saint John has now won five straight games and have outscored opponents 34-8 over that span.

Other Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams ranked this week were the Baie-Comeau Drakkar at No. 2, Victoriaville Tigres at No. 7 and the Quebec Remparts at No. 9. The Shawinigan Cataractes were an honourable mention.

Jacques Beaulieu and the Sarnia Sting moved up to No. 6 this week.

The weekly rankings of the Canadian Hockey League’s Top 10 teams are selected by a panel of National Hockey League scouts.

SAINT JOHN – Here is something you don’t see on ebay
everyday – an acrylic painting of Saint John Sea Dogs mascot Fleaburn.

According to the description, the piece of art is part of
“A Brush of Hope – Celebrity Paintings for Kidney Research in support of The
Kidney Foundation of Canada.”

More info:

This is a rare opportunity for you to own an ORIGINAL, one-of-a-kind painting by Brent Crawford as Fleaburn, the Saint John Sea Dogs' mascot. All proceeds from the sale of this painting will go to The Kidney Foundation of Canada so that the Foundation can continue to fund much needed kidney research and improve the lives of people living with kidney disease.

The auction ends on October 30. The current highest bid
(and only bid) is at $49.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

The club announced today that West, a Fredericton native, has
been acquired through waivers. He last played with the Moncton Wildcats.

The six-foot-three, 204-pound forward has played in three games with the Wildcats this season,
recording no points, two penalty minutes and a -2 rating. His last game with
Moncton was on October 5 in Halifax.

The 19-year old played in three games with the
Wildcats last season as well, going pointless and registering 10 penalty
minutes. He didn’t record any points in three contests with the Baie-Comeau
Drakkar in 2009-10, either.

West played most of last season with the Campbellton
Tigers of the Maritime Hockey League, tallying nine goals, 22 points and
99 penalty minutes in 46 games at the junior A level. In 2009-10 he had nine
markers, 12 helpers and 81 penalty minutes in 46 games with the Tigers.

The addition of West gives the Sea Dogs eight New
Brunswickers on their roster with three of them being from Fredericton (West,
Oliver Cooper and Zack Phillips).

Gauthier scored six of his Sea Dogs’ 21 goals in their three wins this past weekend. The 20-year old scored one goal in Saint John’s 5-0 win on Friday in Halifax, three goals in a 10-3 win over the PEI Rocket and two in Sunday’s 6-0 win over the Quebec Remparts.

The rugged centre is off to a sensational start this season having compiled 16 goals and four assists in just 15 games. He is currently tied with Bathurst’s Zach O’Brien for the league goal-scoring lead.

Huberdeau was in a sharing mood this week, racking up six assists and one goal in three games. He scored on Friday night in Halifax and added three assists on both Saturday and Sunday. The Sea Dogs’ captain has four goals and 12 assists in eight games since returning from Florida Panthers training camp.

Gauthier-Leduc added points in each of his team’s three victories. Wednesday, he registered two points in a 4-3 win and scored a goal which allowed him to add his name to the record book among defensemen with one goal in seven consecutive games. It was his 10th of the season. Friday, against the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, he beat the 32 year-old record held by former Remparts Gaston Therrien, by scoring his 8th consecutive goal. That same evening, he became the 46th defenseman in QMJHL history to reach 50 career goals. Gauthier-Leduc got two goals, three assists for a total of five points and a +/- of +6 this week.

It’s no surprise to see Huberdeau, Phillips and Beaulieu
invited as all played in the series last year and were selected in the first
round of the National Hockey League Entry Draft in June. It’s great to see the
undrafted and often underrated Durepos earn a spot.

Phillips is second in team scoring with eight goals and 11
assists for 19 points in 12 games. Huberdeau has four goals and 12 assists in
eight games since returning from Florida Panthers training camp. Beaulieu has
four markers and six helpers while Durepos has a goal and seven assists.

Each of the three CHL member leagues assembled a
selection committee, which worked closely with Hockey Canada’s Chief Scout,
Kevin Prendergast, to select the players for this year’s series. The QMJHL
selection committee included QMJHL’s Executive vice-president, Marcel
Patenaude, the Director of Hockey Operations, PierreLeduc and the general
managers of the Quebec Remparts, Patrick Roy, the Victoriaville Tigres, Jérôme
Mésonéro and the Acadie-Bathurst Titan, Sylvain Couturier.

The event is used to help determine Team Canada's roster for the World Junior Hockey Championship this winter.

A collection of recaps from yesterday’s 6-0 Saint John
Sea Dogs win over the Quebec Remparts…

Our recap. The Sea Dogs played one of their best games of
the season on Sunday afternoon.

The Telegraph-Journal’s recap."They
were very dominant and by far the best team we've seen so far. I appreciate the
way they move the puck down low, but I also like their intensity. They
backcheck hard, they see the ice well and they're nice to watch.'' – Remparts
head coach Patrick Roy.

OUT OF ACTION: Oliver Cooper received a one-game
suspension for removing a player’s helmet during a fight on Saturday night
against the PEI Rocket. Devon Oliver-Dares (personal reasons), Tyrone Sock
(healthy) and Stanislav Galiev (broken wrist) were out of the lineup once
again.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Wining 5-0 in Halifax on Friday and 10-3 over PEI on Saturday, the Sea Dogs finished their three-in-three with a dominating 6-0 victory over the Quebec Remparts on Sunday afternoon at Harbour Station.

Danick Gauthier scored a pair to give him 16 goals in 15 games this season. Jason Cameron, Tomas Jurco, Nathan Beaulieu and Charles-Olivier Roussel had the other goals. Mathieu Corbeil recorded his second straight shutout by stopping all 22 shots he faced.

It was a dominating performance by Saint John. Quebec was able to stay in the game thanks to the play of goaltender Louis Domingue who kept it a three-goal contest heading into the third despite being outshot by a large margin.

The Sea Dogs outshot the Remparts 49-22 in the match. Quebec was unable to score on any power play opportunities and gave up two shorthanded goals.

The win gave Saint John their fifth straight win and a league-best record of 12-5-0-0.

SAINT JOHN – Two of the top teams in the Quebec Major
Junior Hockey League meet this afternoon at Harbour Station as the Saint John
Sea Dogs host the Quebec Remparts. Game time is 3pm.

The Sea Dogs enter play today with a record of 11-5-0-0
and sit first in the Maritimes Division and the entire league. The Remparts are
9-2-2-1 and are second in the Telus East Division and fourth overall in the
league.

In the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings this past week,
the Sea Dogs were ranked fifth and the Remparts sixth.

Saint John is coming off a solid 10-3 blowout win over
the PEI Rocket last night at the Station. The Sea Dogs dominated the majority
of the game, a contest that featured a seven-goal outburst in the second
period. Quebec played in Halifax last night and fell 4-3 in overtime to the
Mooseheads.

Quebec and Saint John have been two of the hotter teams
of late. The Dogs have won four straight and are 8-2-0-0 in their last 10 while
Quebec is on a 9-0-2-1 run and are 9-0-1-1 in their last 10.

The Sea Dogs have scored the second most goals in the QMJHL this
season (73) while the Remparts have surrendered the second fewest (41).

Entering this season, it looked as though the Remparts
would use this as a building year. But after picking 21 points in their first
14 games it appears they could be contenders once again this year. They have
plenty of young talent highlighted by rookies Mikhail Grigorenko, Adam Erne and
Anthony Duclair.

Entering play today, five of the top 15 rookie point
scorers are Rempart players.

This game ends a three-game road trip through the
Maritimes for Quebec. Today’s match also ends a three-in-three for Saint John.

Huberdeau also had three assists. Tomas Jurco, Ryan
Tesink and Charles-Olivier Roussel all had a pair of helpers each.

Sebastien Auger made 19 saves in the win.

The Rocket scored the game’s opening goal but that would
be just about the only bright spot for them. The Sea Dogs dominated most of the
game, holding period leads of 2-1 and 9-1. Saint John outshot PEI 48-22 with 12
of the Rocket’s shots coming in the final frame.

Saint John was so dominant that at one point Phillips had
the same amount of shots on goal as the entire Rocket team.

SAINT JOHN – It is ‘Pink in the Rink’ night at Harbour
Station as the Saint John Sea Dogs host the PEI Rocket at 7pm.

The Sea Dogs will be wearing pink jerseys during the
game. The specially designed sweaters will be auctioned off with the proceeds
going to breast cancer research.

“The Sea Dogs are extremely proud to be a part of such a
great tradition, especially for this important cause,” said Sea Dogs President
Wayne Long in a release earlier this week. “We are happy to know that our
contributions can help make a difference. We would also like to thank the
support of our fans that help make this happen.”

The Sea Dogs raised $4,700 last season during the same
event, a major contribution toward the total of $115,000 raised by the league
along with corporate partner TELUS.

Saint John enters play tonight with a record of 10-5-0-0
and sit first in the Maritimes Division and second overall in the Quebec Major
Junior Hockey League. They have won three straight games, outscoring their
opponents 18-5 over that span.

The Dogs are coming off a solid win in Halifax last
night. Tomas Jurco scored twice while Jonathan Huberdeau, Danick Gauthier and
Scott Oke each added singles. Mathieu Corbeil made 20 stops to shutout his
former team.

Saint John has played their last four games on the road.
Their last home game was a 6-2 win over the Victoriaville Tigres on September
9. Tonight’s match kicks off a four-game homestand for the defending champs.

The Rocket enter play this evening with a record 4-9-1-1
for 10 points. They sit last in the Maritimes Division and dead last in the
entire league. They are 3-6-1-0 in their last 10 games.

Saint John defeated PEI 5-3 on September 18 at the
Station. Danick Gauthier had a hat trick in the game and singles came courtesy
of Brock Morrison and Scott Oke. Sebastien Auger made 40 saves in the win. The
Sea Dogs were without the likes of Jonathan Huberdeau, Zack Phillips, Nathan
Beaulieu, Tomas Jurco and Charles-Olivier Roussel for that previous encounter.

Friday, October 21, 2011

The 20-year old goaltender was recalled by the Columbus
Blue Jackets on an emergency basis earlier this week, playing the role of Steve
Mason’s backup on Tuesday. As if that wasn’t enough fun for one week, Corbeil
recorded his first career Quebec Major Junior Hockey League regular season
shutout on Friday night, backstopping the Saint John Sea Dogs to a 5-0 win over
his former team.

Corbeil made some big stops in key moments in Saint John’s
win over the Halifax Mooseheads. In total, the netminder made 20 stops in the
building he once called home.

Friday night saw the Sea Dogs play a pretty solid game. They
played well in the first period, okay in the second and then blew it open in
the third. Saint John outshot Halifax 30-20.

Tomas Jurco had a pair of goals which were scored 15
seconds apart. Danick Gauthier, Jonathan Huberdeau and Scott Oke each had
singles. Rookie Oliver Cooper had two assists.

Cooper had a more productive night than super rookie
Nathan MacKinnon of the Mooseheads. Playing in his first game against Saint
John, MacKinnon was held pointless, had two shots and was a -2.

Anthony Terenzio allowed five goals on 30 shots in the
loss.

Saint John has now won three straight games. Friday’s
loss ended the Mooseheads winning streak at five.

After three straight years of icing terrible hockey
teams, the Mooseheads are moving in the right direction this season. Off to
an 8-4-0-0 start, Halifax sits second in the Maritimes Division and seventh
overall in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Winners of five straight, the Moose will try to keep
their streak going tonight against the Saint John Sea Dogs. Game time is 7pm at
the Halifax Metro Centre.

Halifax will use this weekend as a measuring stick to see
just how good they really are. They host the fifth ranked team in Canada
tonight and sixth ranked team – the Quebec Remparts – tomorrow.

“It’s definitely going to be a test for us,” said forward
Travis Randell to the Chronicle Herald. “Quebec (was) in first place in the
league and Saint John is probably the favourite to win our league again and
maybe even another Memorial Cup. It’s definitely going to be a challenge and
for the younger guys, it will be a good learning experience as well. Hopefully
it pulls us even closer and who knows what can happen. If we come out the way
we feel we’re capable of playing, I think we can beat anyone in this league.”

Tonight is the first meeting of the season between the
Sea Dogs and Mooseheads. Saint John went 8-0-0-0 against the Herd last year.

Saint John has a record of 9-5-0-0 and sit second overall
in the QMJHL with 18 points. They are 8-2-0-0 in their last 10 games and have
won two straight.

The Dogs are 5-1 on home ice this season but have been
average on the road. Away from Harbour Station they are 4-4-0-0 and have been
outscored 36-27. Six of those eight road contests have been played in unfamiliar
Quebec arenas.

Despite playing two Quebec road swings already, this is
the first three-in-three for the Sea Dogs. They host the PEI Rocket tomorrow
night and the Quebec Remparts on Sunday.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

SAINT JOHN – The Saint John Sea Dogs play their first
three-in-three of the season beginning tomorrow night in Halifax.

The Mooseheads host the Sea Dogs tomorrow night at 7pm at
the Halifax Metro Centre for their ‘Pink In The Rink’ game. The Moose will be
wearing pick jerseys and the match will be played on pick ice.

It’s the first meeting of the season between Halifax and
Saint John. The Sea Dogs will get their first look at super rookie Nathan
MacKinnon who sits third in first-year scoring with five goals and 14 assists
in 12 games.

The Mooseheads are one of the hottest teams in the league
at the moment having won their last five games. They have a record of 8-4-0-0
and sit second in the Maritimes Division.

On Saturday, the PEI Rocket travel to Saint John to face
the Sea Dogs at 7pm at Harbour Station. Like the Mooseheads on Friday, the Sea
Dogs will be wearing pick jerseys in support of breast cancer research.

The Rocket sit last dead-last in both the Maritimes
Division and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with a record of 4-8-1-1
for 10 points. The Sea Dogs beat the Rocket 5-3 on September 18 at Harbour
Station without the likes of Jonathan Huberdeau, Zack Phillips, Nathan
Beaulieu, Tomas Jurco, Charles-Olivier Roussel and Mathieu Corbeil. Danick Gauthier
had a hat trick in that game.

Saint John will host another super rookie on Sunday
afternoon at the Station as Mikhail Grigorenko and the Quebec Remparts come to town.
Grigorenko, the second overall pick in this past summer’s Canadian Hockey
League Import Draft, leads all QMJHL rookies in scoring with 10 goals and 11
assists in 13 games.

Quebec enters play this weekend as the No. 6 ranked team
in the BMO CHL MasterCard Top 10 Rankings. Their record of 9-2-1-1 is good for
second in the Telus West Division and fourth overall in the league.

Stanislav Galiev gave everyone an update on his broken
wrist via Twitter on Tuesday.

“Upset... Just came back from a doctor,” he tweeted. “4
more weeks in cast.”

Galiev played in five games with Saint John before hitting the injured list, recording three goals and three assists. There
is no real timeline set for his return.

FIGHTING FOR FIGHTING

John Moore, the Halifax Mooseheads’ play-by-play man on
News 95.7, sent out an interesting tweet earlier today.

“Sea Dogs won't be sitting on the fence at Q meetings
in Mtl tomorrow,” tweeted Moore. “They are totally opposed to removing fighting
from the league.”

Wonder what the specific reasons behind this are?

PROMOTIONS

A bunch of promotions are going on over the next couple
of weeks as the Sea Dogs kick off a four-game homestand beginning this
Saturday.

On Saturday at Harbour Station against the PEI Rocket,
the Sea Dogs will wear pink jerseys for the annual 'Pink In The Rink' promotion. The jerseys will be auctioned off with the
proceeds going to breast cancer research.

On Sunday afternoon against the Quebec Remparts, it is Halloween
Fun Day. Fans of all ages are encouraged to attend the game in costume,
and there will be treats and a costume parade for children. Families can take
advantage of the four-for-$46 ticket package.

Next Saturday, October 29, it’s the game that everyone
in the city has had circled for months. The banner-raising ceremonies for the
President’s Cup and the Memorial Cup will take place before the game against
the Chicoutimi Sagueneens, as well as the presentations of commemorative
championship rings to players, coaches, ownership and staff. Both Canadian Hockey League commissioner David Branch and Quebec
Major Junior Hockey League commissioner Gilles Courteau will be among the special
guests.

The Saint John Sea Dogs are ranked fifth in the Canadian
Hockey League for the second straight week. The latest edition of the BMO CHL
MasterCard Top 10 Rankings were released today.

The Sea Dogs had a rough start to the week, falling 5-1
in Gatineau last Wednesday. But the club rebounded with a 9-4 win in
Rouyn-Noranda on Friday and a 4-1 victory on Saturday in Val-d’Or. Saint John
is 8-2-0-0 in their last 10 games.

The Baie-Comeau Drakkar slipped to No. 3 in the Top 10.
The other Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams to crack the list were the
Quebec Remparts at No. 6 and Victoriaville Tigres at No. 10. The Shawinigan
Cataractes were an honourable mention.

Jacques Beaulieu’s Sarnia Sting slid into the rankings
this week, coming in at No. 8 with an 8-1-0-1 record.

The weekly rankings of the CHL’s Top 10 teams are
selected by a panel of National Hockey League scouts.

The Sea Dogs have a tough weekend ahead, playing three
games in three days. They travel to Halifax to face the Mooseheads –
winners of five straight – on Friday. The Dogs then host the last-place PEI
Rocket on Saturday and the nationally ranked Quebec Remparts on Sunday.

Mathieu Corbeil made his National Hockey League bench debut last night, playing the role as backup goaltender for the Columbus Blue Jackets. The club recalled Corbeil on an emergency basis due to several goaltenders in their system currently suffering from injuries.

Here are some news and notes on the game:

The Blue Jackets fell 3-2 to the Dallas Stars at Nationwide Arena. Steve Ott, Jamie Benn and Michael Ryder all scored for Dallas while Derick Brassard and Kris Russell each had markers for the Jackets.

Steve Mason allowed three goals on 18 shots for Columbus.

Columbus fell to a terrible 0-5-1. They are the worst team in the NHL and the only squad without a win.

Only 9,158 in attendance. Not that surprising. You’d probably have to pay us to watch a Columbus – Dallas game.

The Blue Jackets website explains the situation: "Wild day for Mathieu Corbeil. The Blue Jackets have injuries to goaltenders Mark Dekanich (ankle), Curtis Sanford (undisclosed) and Allen York (shoulder), meaning they had to recall Corbeil from Saint John of the QMJHL on an emergency basis. Per the rules of the NHL-CHL agreement, Corbeil can only stay with the Blue Jackets for 24 hours before being returned to his junior club."

Corbeil became the first Sea Dogs goaltender in team history to dress for a NHL game. Defenseman Yann Sauve is the only Dog to appear in a match, playing five games for the Vancouver Canucks last year.

Former Blue Jackets head coach Gerard Gallant on the callup: "They were in dire straits with their two goalies getting hurt the other day in practice,'' Gallant told the Telegraph-Journal. "He (Corbeil) was pretty excited when I called Monday. At first he didn't know if he was getting traded or what was going on.''

Saint John recalled Richard Tingley from the Amherst Ramblers of the Maritime Junior ‘A’ Hockey League for practice yesterday. The 18-year-old netminder has a perfect 5-0 record in five games level to go with a 2.60 GAA and .921 SV%.

The Jackets are off to a horrendous 0-4-1 start and sit
last in the National Hockey League’s Western Conference entering play tonight.
They only registered 15 shots on goal in their 4-2 loss in Dallas on Saturday.

Even though he will likely sit on the bench all game,
Corbeil will no doubt relish the experience.

The 20-year old netminder is off to a solid start this
season, going 7-2-0-0 with a 2.61 goals against average and a 0.889 save
percentage in his first nine games since returning from NHL training camp.

This past Friday night in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Simon
Despres and the Penguins hosted Mike Thomas and the Springfield Falcons.

It was an eventful night for the two former Saint John
Sea Dogs as Thomas recorded his first career American Hockey League goal and
Despres his first assist in the Falcons’ 7-4 win. Thomas also recorded an
assist, his second of the year.

Thomas’ goal came at the expense of another former Sea Dog
as an Alex Grant turnover setup the play.

Despres assist happens around the 1:21 mark of the video
below. Thomas’ goal goes down at the 1:57 mark. Highlights courtesy of the Wilkes-Blog.

OUT OF ACTION: Defenseman Ian Saab returned from a suspension
so Tyrone Sock was a healthy scratch. Forward Stanislav Galiev missed the
game with a broken wrist.

SAAB’S FIRST POINT: Speaking of Saab, he recorded his
first point as a member of the Sea Dogs when he assisted on Zack Phillips’ second
period goal. He was also a +1 with one shot.

The defenseman also picked up a roughing penalty. He has
gotten some kind of penalty in all six games he has played in this season.

SHOTS: According to News 88.9, the Sea Dogs tied a team
record for fewest shots allowed in a game. The Foreurs could only fire 15 on
Mathieu Corbeil. Despite not being tested too much, Corbeil was named second star.

Neither team had a great night offensively in the first
half of the game. The first period hardly had any legit scoring chances. Once
Phillips broke the ice late in the second period, things picked up.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

VAL-D’OR – The Saint John Sea Dogs ended their Quebec
road trip on a winning note.

Zack Phillips scored twice and added an assist in the Sea Dogs’
4-1 victory over the Val-d’Or Foreurs on Saturday night at the Air Creebec Centre in
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Jason Cameron and Stephen MacAulay
added the other two Saint John goals.

Neither team had many offensive chances in the opening
frame. It wasn’t until the second period that the Sea Dogs got on the board,
ending Val-d’Or’s lengthy shutout streak. Saint John led 2-0 entering the third
period where they would add two more to take the contest 4-1.

Former Sea Dog Nicolas Marcoux scored the lone Foreurs
goal. Francois Tremblay, last week’s Candian Hockey League Goaltender of the
Week, allowed four goals on 28 shots in the loss.

The victory improved the Sea Dogs to 9-5-0-0 on the
season and a 2-1 record on their road trip.

The Sea Dogs are coming off a 9-4 victory over the
Rouyn-Noranda Huskies last night, improving to 1-1 on their trip. They lost 5-1
to the Gatineau Olympiques on Wednesday at Robert Guertin Centre.

Last night, Danick Gauthier recorded a hat trick and
Aidan Kelly had a pair of goals. Zack Phillips, Jonathan Huberdeau, Ryan Tesink
and Oliver Cooper had the other markers. Huberdeau, Tesink, Stephen MacAulay and
Pierre Durepos all had two assists each. Sebastien Auger made 16 saves in goal.

Although it wasn't perfect, it was a much better game than
the one the Dogs played on Wednesday in Gatineau. Saint John will look to
improve their play even more this evening against the Foreurs, a team they have
already had success against this season.

On September 23, the Sea Dogs defeated the Foreurs 5-4 in
a shootout at Harbour Station. Stephen Anderson, McKenzie Brown and Stanislav
Galiev – all of whom are not currently with the team – along with Jason Cameron
scored in regulation for Saint John. Aidan Kelly scored the shootout winner.

Val-d’Or had a pair of goals from Benjamin Casavant and
singles from Artem Sergeev and Nicolas Larocque-Marcoux. The Foreurs trailed
4-2 entering the third period but made a comeback to tie the match. Larocque-Marcoux, a former Sea Dog, scored the equalizer with three seconds remaining.

The Foreurs enter play tonight with a record of 6-5-0-2 which is good for 14 points and a tie for top spot in the
Telus West Division with the Olympiques. They have been outscored 42-36 by
their opponents.

With their win last night, Saint John finally retook the
Maritimes Division lead. They have a record of 8-5-0-0 for 16 points and sit a
point up on the Moncton Wildcats.

A win tonight would even Saint John’s road record at 4-4.
They have struggled away from Harbour Station at times this season having been
outscored 35-23 over seven games.